Toy horse.



No. 659,060. Patented 00L 2, |900.

M. FLICK.

`TOY HORSE.

(Application led Nov. 29, 1899.1

(No'Model.)

REV i. Escl-l u l .f1 `;'|l G Q x lll/Ill 5 1; QZ ,3 INVENTQE.

ATTEST. Wbm

UNrrnD STATES IPATENT OFFICE.

MELCHIOR FLICK, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO.

TOY HORSE.

SPECIFICATION 'forming part of Letters Patent No. 659,060, dated October 2, 1900. Application tiled November 29, 1899. Serial No. 738,654. (No model.)

T0 all whom, it Amay concern:

Be it known that I, MELCHIOR FLICK, a citizen of the United States, residing at Cleveland, in the county of Cuyahoga and State of Ohio, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Toy Horses; and- I do declare that the following is a full, clear, andexact description of the invention, which will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to toy horses; and the invention consists in a toy horse supported on wheels and adapted to be -rolled and having handles upon the head of the horse to guide the vehicle, substantiallyas shown andV described, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure lis a perspective elevation of my newand improved horse: Fig. 2 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional elevation of the horse proper and a portion of the base and its connectingv mechanism, but omitting the wheels. Fig. 3 is a perspective elevation of a portion of the steering mechanism.

A represents the horse, and B the rear wheels, and C the front wheels. Each of these sets of wheels has a shaft d and c, respectively, on which the wheels are adapted to rotate; but the two sets of wheels are independent of each other except as they are connected through the body of thehorse. The horse is supported upon the rear axle, while at the front there is a bifurcated standard 2, rigid with the axle o at the extremity of its forks and having a spindle 3 above its forks carrying a spring 4, on which rests a downwardly-extending arm 5 from the bottom plate or strip D, which is secured lengthwise on the under side of the body A of the horse and which extends forward at its front to receive the upper end of the spindle 3, thus aording a firm support for the horse at the front upon the said spindle and the bifurcated standard 2. Ihis support, however, is such that the weight of the rider cushions upon the spring 4, so that the advantages of a spring-seat practically are obtained and the jarring which an unyielding support would entail is avoided.

Upon the standard 3 there is a cross-arm 6, which connects by means of rods 7 with the corresponding cross-arm 8 upon the lower end of the standard E. This standard passes down centrally through the fore part of the body of the horse and comes through at the bottom'just in the rear of and between his fore legs and at its upper end is fixed to the neck of the horse. The head and neck of the horse F are made inv one piece and adapted to have a horizontal rotation upon the body through the rod E, and a set of handle-bars G, representing horns in appearance, are fixed to the head of the horse at the rear of the ears and arranged and constructed to extend -back into convenient position for the rider 'to lay hold upon and guide the vehicle. The

parallel cross-bars or arms 6 and 8 are therefore each rigid with the standards 3 and E, respectively, and the connecting-rod 7 serves with this construction and the horizontallyrotatable head F to control the positions of the front wheels for the guidance or steering of the vehicle.

H represents a detachable handle which may be used for operating and guiding the vehicle, or it can be detached, as may be preferred. The said handle is engaged beneath the rear of the body of the horse in a suitable socket whioh extends under said body, and a spring-holder h, secured to the handle itself, is adapted to bear'against the crossstrap h' and lock the handle from being drawn out. To release the handle, depress the spring so as to pass said strap, and it is in position to be removed.

Another feature of theinvention is the Vertically-adjustable saddle J, adapting it to riders of different sizes. To this end the saddle has a tubular spindle -lO on its bottom, with a series of cross-holes adapted to receive a cross-pin 12, and the said pin is inserted in the upper or middle or lower hole, according to the size of the rider, and the spindle l0 is long enough to hold the seat firm in either position.

The vehicle is propelled by means of pedals 13, sprocket-chain 14, sprocket-Wheel l5 on the rear axle, and sprocket-wheel 16, supported on the shaft 17, beneath the center of the body of the horse, substantially as shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

It is also found desirable to have an adjustnrent for the shaft 17 to a higher or lower IOO plane corresponding somewhat to the adjustment-s of the seat J, and to this end the bracket 18, which supports the shaft 17, is provided with three several bearings a, al, and a2, the bracket having halt` of said bearings in itself and the other half being in a bracket-piece 20, which is pivoted on the bracket 18 at its bottom and is adapted t0 swing upon and shut in respect thereto and to be confined by short bolt and nut 21 at its top. This construction taken with the adjustment of the seat gives a large range 0f adjustment, and it can be made without detriment to the operation through the sprocketchain, which may vary in slackness Without interfering with the operation.

What I claim is- 1. The horse, the front wheels and the upright standard thereon, a plate extending forward from the bottom of the horse and an inclined arm fixed thereon and having said standard rotatably engaged therein, a spring on said upright beneath said arm to cushion the weight of the horse and rider, and steering mechanism connected with said standard between said plate and arm, substantially as described.

2. The horse and its supporting wheels and axles, in combination with a detachable handle-stem connected with the rear and bottom of the body of the horse, a spring-catch on said handle and a fixed catch therefor on the horse, substantially as described.

Witness my hand to the foregoing specification this 22d day of November, 1899.

MELCHIOR FLICK.

Witnesses:

H. E. MUDRA, R. B. MOSER. 

